1. Technical Field
The present invention generally relates to nanoparticles, and more particularly to nanoparticle-filled nanocomposites.
2. Background Information
Nanoparticles are gaining considerable interest for a wide variety of applications in the electronic, chemical, optical and mechanical industries due to their unique physical and chemical properties. Nanoparticles can be made of a variety of materials and are typically defined as particles having a diameter of 1-100 nanometers. Recently, the modification of nanoparticles in order to change their physical and chemical properties has become an area of significant research.
One way to modify nanoparticles is through reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. RAFT polymerization is a recently developed controlled rapid polymerization (CRP) technique that is used to prepare polymer materials with predetermined molecular weights, narrow polydispersities, and advanced architectures. RAFT has been used to surface modify nanoparticles with a bound polymer in order to minimize steric crowding between nanoparticles and impart superior dispersion characteristics to modified particles.
Click chemistry is a chemical technique whereby chemical compounds (often polymers) are generated by joining small repeated units together, usually by a dipolar cycloaddition. Click chemistry has been used for surface modification of nanoparticles with high density polymer brushes.
Optics is one of many disciplines where nanoparticles have been applied. Specifically, investigators have tried to use nanoparticles to improve upon certain optical characteristics of nanocomposite materials. However, previous technologies, such as nanoparticle modification through the use of surfactants, were limited in their ability to create high refractive index, high transmission nanocomposites. Several problems plague these technologies including problems with agglomeration, increased scattering, and increased optical loss.